Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard

Title/Author: Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard
Publisher/Date: Random House – March 2012
Genre: Contemporary Young Adult
How I Received This: The publisher was kind enough to send me this!
Find Wanderlove on Amazon or Goodreads

What it about in a sentence or two: Bria decides to use the summer before college to trot the globe (err Central America) to reclaim who she is and have the adventure of a lifetime to help assuage the pain of her recent breakup. When her fellow globetrotters end up being middle aged, “by the guide book” type, she eagerly abandons her planned out trip for an invitation to backpack with two “real” global vagabonds who show her what self discovery on the road is really about.

Ever read a book summary and just get this overwhelming urge to keep screaming, “THIS BOOK IS SO ME!!” Yeah…pretty much that was my experience.

Before I go into my review you have to understand thing one thing about me. If I could, I would be a nomadic wanderer traveling the world for the rest of my life. I mean, read my About Me. If there’s one thing I love more than books, it’s travel. Soul shaking, life changing travel. And it always is. As I seemed to have put it way back when I made my About Me, ” I have this insatiable desire to be everywhere I’m NOT.” So you can imagine why I went batshit crazy about a book that asks, “Do you want to be a global vagabond?” Um why YES..yes I do.

Truly, Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard is one of my favorite books I’ve read this year or so! It’s got a little bit of everything — adventure, romance, friendship, self discovery, lush descriptions, & it even has DRAWINGS in it!! Like the realization of a good trip coming to a close, I started to panic when I realized I was nearing the end of this book…grasping for pages that weren’t there. I just wasn’t ready for it to end.

The story is so well written and flows so well at a perfect pace- much like the ebb and flow of a good trip. Hubbard’s descriptions of settings and “on the road” encounters are authentic & vivid; paying tribute to her exceptional travel writing abilities that abound with transportable qualities that make you feel every chicken truck ride or picturesque sunset. As beautiful as her travel writing is, I cannot speak enough about the way these characters are written and the very raw and believable growth we witness. I don’t know WHICH adventure was more satisfying to be honest.

Bria, Rowan, Starling and the characters along the way were so lively and memorable. Bria is someone who is so easy to relate to. She wants to be uninhibited, fight for the person she WANTS to be and just living in this shadow of herself that was partly created by her douche of an ex….but she’s got so much she’s holding on to. Watching her grow and start to rediscover herself was an exciting journey in itself. Rowan…oh Rowan. I wouldn’t mind being his travel partner as it seems we share similar travel philosophies….minus the fact that sometimes he seems a bit pretentious about travel. Travel is such a personal thing and when you are serious about it..I guess it’s easy to sometimes come off like that and wanting everyone to experience the way you do.

Can we just talk about the tension between Bria and Rowan? OH MY GOSH. I could feel my whole body clenching when I would hold my breath during their encounters. I just wanted to pluck them out of the book and smash their faces together causing them to smooch like I used to do with Barbie and Ken. YOU KNOW YOU WANT IT!

My Final Thought: Read this. If you love a realistic YA read that is a fun, light not lacking in substance, romantical tension that is done right and a romp across some of the most amazing places in the world…then you might want to bump this one up now! I’ll be singing the praises of this book for a long time to come. It’s more on the romance/self discovery side as I felt some of the travel aspects did start to fade into the background but, if you don’t go into this expecting something resembling a travelogue, you’ll be fine!

Jamie is a 28 year old married lady who is in denial that she's actually that old. When she's not reading you can find her doing Pilates followed by eating gelato, listening to music with oversized headphones and teaching her niece how to be as awesome as she is.

Right now I"m sitting here at work wishing I was anywhere but here. Your review just took me out of my workplace for that few minutes. I love both books and reviews that do that. It definitely appeals to the travel-keen soul within. Great review. Leanna over at Daisy Chain Books also can't stop raving about it. I can't wait to read it myself!

LOVE this review! And the post it totally rocks! You make me want to pick this up RIGHT now and while I can't, I'll get to it SUPER soon! I've only heard fab things and your review is a great example of why everyone seems to be falling in love!

I am going to tattoo this line to my arm. "I just wanted to pluck them out of the book and smash their faces together causing them to smooch like I used to do with Barbie and Ken." I love it. I love this review. And I love your enthusiasm. I'm going to sneak this book into my purse and read it after I start the book I haven't started yet. Did that even make sense? haha

I think the feeling that this book "was written for me" is bordering on universal, I felt the same way when I read and reviewed it,and your's is at least the 3rd review I have read since that echoes that same sentiment. I love it when you feel such a close personal connection to something you read:) Great review!

I really liked this book. I was unsure about Rowan for most of it. I could see her feelings for him developing but I wasn't sure if he was a good guy or not. I hate when girls fall for jerks. But oh, this book was amazing.

You’ve made me so excited to read this! A new favorite? Those are pretty big words I’d love to just drop everything and travel the globe so this book sounds beyond lovely. It’s definitely added to the wish list!

Wow, great review Jamie! I can’t wait to read this one when I’m done school. I haven’t really travelled but I SO want to. I didn’t realize the book had drawings – that’s neat. Also I love your little “review on a post-it” – very clever

Wonderful review Jamie! I’m reading this book right now and I’m loving it! I love the pacing of the book because it lets the characters develop natural. Ohhh and the tension between Bria and Rowan…*sighs*. They are such compelling characters!

[…] 4. Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard: This was just such a fun contemporary that just both satiated AND stirred up the travel bug that is oh so present in my life. Loved everything about this book! (review of Wanderlove) […]

[…] Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard: I think this book made me FEEL the travel more than any book ever. I NEED to go backpacking in South America! Seriously, the vividness and the essence of travel that Kirsten Hubbard brings makes this one of my favorite armchair vacations. […]

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